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The Namibia seamer walked away from a game that seemed to actively exclude black players like him, but now he finds himself in the T20 World Cup squad

Cameron Ponsonby17-Oct-2022″Find what you love and let it kill you.”A quote that is widely attributed to American poet Charles Bukowski, this line has more recently found itself a home in 30-year-old Namibian seamer Tangeni Lungameni’s WhatsApp status.It is an exhortation that summarises Lungameni’s relationship with a sport that has taken him to breaking point multiple times – and now to a World Cup, finally.Starting in the sport at the age of six, Lungameni rose through the Namibia ranks until he was dropped on the eve of the Under-19 World Cup and quit. What followed was a decade-long journey that took him from being a community coach to playing 4th XI club cricket to being the head groundsman for Cricket Namibia, until finally, over ten years after deciding to walk away from the sport, he has the chance to pull on his country’s shirt at a World Cup.Namibia are a miraculous but uncomfortable cricketing nation. The game is a white man’s sport in a black country. In a nation where only 6% are white, just four members of their World Cup squad are players of colour.It is a hangover from a time when the country, then known as South West Africa, operated under South Africa’s apartheid rule. Independence was gained in 1990, but the effects of the divided past are still felt. Racial tensions exist and inequality between whites and blacks is widespread. As recently as 2017, the government proposed that white business owners, who dominate the economy, sell 25% of their stake to blacks in a plan that was later scrapped. In the same year, the selection of Lungameni and black team-mate Pikky Ya France for the Namibian squad, but not playing XI, was described as “smokescreen inclusion” and the omitting of a young black hockey player from the Namibian U-16 girls’ team made national news.Cricket in Namibia is white-focused and concentrated in Windhoek, the capital city, where four of the nation’s five top-level clubs are based. Furthermore, Namibia’s landscape means building additional infrastructure is as difficult as it could be anywhere in the world. The nation has the second-lowest population density on the planet, behind only Mongolia. By square mile, it is roughly the same size as Pakistan, except that there are 242 million people in Pakistan, whereas Namibia has 2.5 million.Related

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Lungameni is black and from Gobabis, about 210km east of Windhoek. He has broken in from outside the system, both literally and figuratively.He went to an overwhelmingly white primary school, where he was, by his own estimate, one of the first ten black students to attend. “We had a principal whose name was Wimpy Silver, and he was the coach for all age groups,” he explains.”It was a white, white, white school when I started there… and it was compulsory to do all sports at the school, so the teacher could see what you were good at. So that’s how the principal saw me and said, ‘Okay, cool. Let’s try cricket then’. And it never went backwards after that!”When he moved from primary school to secondary, there was no cricket at his new school, so Lungameni ended up attending his local state school and playing matches for a nearby private school.Nevertheless, while still based in Gobabis, he was chosen to represent Namibia at the U-15 and U-17 level, before a school from Windhoek offered him a scholarship and he moved to the capital full time for cricket and schooling. He was in the system, and he was playing. But then, on the eve of the announcement of the 2012 U-19 World Cup, after featuring in the qualifiers the previous year, he found out he had been dropped.”They told me I wasn’t good enough for the country at the U-19 World Cup level,” he says. “Mentally, I was in a very dark place and decided, well, to give up and go back home.”Lungameni wouldn’t play for over a year, until a “turning point” arrived in the form of a phone call from Francois Erasmus, former Cricket Namibia president and father of current captain Gerhard, with an invitation to fill in for his club’s 4th XI.”We need a seamer,” Erasmus told him on the phone. “And I know you’re not 40 but you’re not playing cricket and it may give you something to do on the weekend.”And so Lungameni’s return to international cricket began to take shape. Travelling up from Gobabis, he’d play on Saturday, then head home on Sunday. His love of the game returned as he played with team-mates old enough to be his dad.”I managed to do well in that team,” Lungameni says, in one of the least surprising admissions you’re ever likely to hear from an international cricketer.

“Sixty per cent of my friends think I’m crazy. [They ask] why would you put yourself through it? The other 40% encourage me and understand”

The 4s turned into the 3s, which turned into the 2s, which turned into the 1s. The club is called Windhoek High School Old Boys Cricket Club, and Lungameni still plays for them now.As he progressed through the XIs, the next stage of Lungameni’s return to the top took shape. A cousin of his, who also played at the same club, was working as a groundsman at Cricket Namibia, and whenever he needed an extra pair of hands, would give Lungameni a call.Over the course of the following year, Lungameni would learn the job through a combination of strict instruction and osmosis. Until eventually, when his cousin moved on elsewhere, he found himself next in line for the job of Cricket Namibia’s head groundsman.When he got the role, it was one that scratched an itch but nothing more. “The only thing I actually wanted was to play, and that was the closest I could sort of get to being involved.”That would change though, thanks to a man named Dee Thakur, an inspirational figure within Namibian cricket before he died at the age of 54 last year. When Lungameni was the groundsman, Thakur was head coach of the national side, and after seeing Lungameni in action, he asked if he’d stay on after hours to bowl at the Namibia squad.Lungameni didn’t need a second invitation and soon he was spending his days working nine-to-five preparing the wickets, boundaries and outfields, then trading his working boots for bowling ones so he could run in at the Namibia squad.”That’s how I kept my fitness up and just kept up with the game and everyone in the squad,” Lungameni says.It was a role he would keep until 2016, when he was awarded his first national professional contract and selected for Namibia’s first-class fixture against Gauteng. Playing against a team that included New Zealand’s Devon Conway, Lungameni walked out at the Wanderers Cricket Ground in Windhoek no longer as the groundsman, but representing his nation.”At that stage, first-class cricket was like playing international cricket to me,” he says with a smile. “I mean, two years ago, I wasn’t playing anything. And now I’m here representing the country. So, for me, it was big.”Lungameni is one of five left-arm seamers in the World Cup squad and after a joke that what they have now is the last of it, Lungameni manages to count five other left-armers of various ages who could still come through in the future.It has, naturally, made selection very competitive. And in the six years that have followed his debut in 2016, his stats page reads like one of a player who has never been far from the XI but has also never fully locked down a spot of his own. He played in three of the five T20Is during Namibia’s historic win over Zimbabwe (their first series victory against a Full-Member side), but bowled only five expensive overs across the matches. He also played only one List A game for Namibia between 2018 and his ODI debut in 2022. But in the eight ODIs he has played in since, he has done well, taking ten wickets at 23.90. In total, in six years he has represented Namibia on 74 occasions, so the chances haven’t been few, but they have occasionally been far between.Lungameni was overlooked for the 2012 Under-19 World Cup and wasn’t picked for last year’s T20 World Cup due to injury. “The fact that two World Cups pass you, you think, maybe this cricket thing isn’t for me”•Kelly Defina/ICC/Getty ImagesA chance was lost last year when Lungameni missed out on the World Cup squad. A repeat of the pain from a decade earlier, but this time due to a finger injury sustained in the weeks leading up the competition. The squad had yet to be named, and due to the number of left-armers in it, and the desire for an extra spinner to be picked, since the tournament was played in the UAE, Lungameni understood his spot was at risk anyway, but now he knew he was done.”I guess that sort of made things easy for the selectors,” he says with a grimace.With Lungameni still at home, and having to fend off questions from club mates about why he wasn’t at the World Cup – “that was not easy at all” – Namibia would qualify for the Super 12s and experience arguably the greatest year of cricket they have ever had. “The fact that it’s two World Cups that pass you, you sort of think, well, maybe this cricket thing isn’t for me,” he says.He speaks of receiving strong support from parents, his girlfriend, and then team psychiatrist Iani de Kock, which helped him to get through the disappointment. He also mentions team-mate Stephan Baard as a good friend from within the squad.In particular, de Kock and he worked together every day, sometimes chatting cricket, sometimes not, in a process that Lungameni says helped him feel human again. “She told me, ‘I’ll book you in every day to come see me and we can just sit and look at each other, or talk about whatever you want to talk about,'” Lungameni says. “I kept it from my parents because where I come from, if you see someone like that, you’re weak… [but] it’s a decision I had to make, and I think it was the best decision.”It is the second rapid turnaround of Lungameni’s life. From not playing cricket at all in 2014 to making his national debut in 2016, and now to overcoming a repeat World Cup disappointment in 2021 and making the squad for the first time in 2022.”There is a lot of pride, because it’s my first World Cup. And that’s the only thing I’m focusing on, you know, I don’t want to think of anything else.”You’ve done your hard work and you’re here now. Just make sure you’re ready when you’re called upon… to be a part of the team that’s in the World Cup is amazing.”But while Namibia’s success on the pitch last year was celebrated, attention was also drawn to a squad that did not look like the country it represented. This was addressed by Erasmus, the captain, following the tournament, when he spoke of the importance of Namibia celebrating their players of colour in order to inspire further generations, citing the likes of Ya France, Ben Shikongo and Mauritius Ngupita as “the guys who are heroes for the people back home”.In 2016, the CEO then, Donovan Zealand, said that Namibian cricket had “definitely” been institutionally racist, with the “short-sightedness” of administrators and coaches to blame for focusing the sport on a small crop of elite players rather than on expansion. The result is a sport that, culturally, many black people see as not only not for them but actively against them.”Sixty per cent of my friends think I’m crazy,” Lungameni says, “[They ask] why? You literally know what to expect going into a game, or if someone says something silly, that’s a trigger. Why would you put yourself through it?”The other 40% encourage me and understand. And there’s a voice in my head that just says push through, do what you have to do, represent your country, and [my friends say] ‘We’re happy when you walk onto the field and we see you on TV.’ It brings a sense of pride to them also.”A wise man once told me, you’ve got to be in the system to change it.”Lungameni’s experience shows it takes persistence to break into the system and persistence to stay in. And finally, half his life after first representing his nation as an U-15, he has a World Cup to show for it.

Adelaide Oval dimensions may prompt a re-think after four consecutive unchanged XIs

Andrew Miller09-Nov-2022Phil Salt impressed during England’s tour to Pakistan•AFP/Getty ImagesPhil Salt

Not exactly a like-for-like replacement, given their differing batting styles, but Salt’s inclusion would seem to play to England’s perceived strength, by loading their line-up with another run-making option, and trusting the collective to keep coming from first ball to last. And yet, that hasn’t quite happened in the tournament so far. Aside from his agenda-setting 73 against New Zealand, Jos Buttler at the top of the order has been reticent by his usual standards, striking at 132 across his four innings, his lowest rate in a series of more than two matches since 2018.And with Harry Brook off-colour compared to his breakthrough series in Pakistan, the rest of England’s line-up has struggled to click – not least the combination of Malan and Ben Stokes at No. 3 and 4, both of whom tend to prefer a few sighters before they find their full strokemaking range. Salt, however, doesn’t operate quite like that. He is cut more from the Jason Roy cloth, with a welcome willingness to give it a wallop from ball one.That can make his returns somewhat hit or miss, but interspersed with four scores of ten or less in Pakistan was his rollicking 88 not out from 41 balls to turn the series in Lahore. His unfettered presence at No. 4 or below could help to clarify Stokes’ role at No. 3, and allow him to build into his innings as he did in his crucial marshalling of a nervy chase against Sri Lanka. Buttler was full of praise for Salt on Wednesday, saying: “He has a fantastic mindset, especially for the T20 format. He embodies quite a lot of what we speak about as a team and how we ask guys to play.”Chris Jordan has only been used as a sub fielder in this tournament•Getty ImagesChris Jordan

In the gunslinging world of death bowling, Jordan was all too easy to blame for England’s exit at this stage in the 2021 tournament. His third and final over was dispatched for 23 runs by Jimmy Neesham to give New Zealand crucial impetus just as their chase was getting steep. This time around, his role has been restricted to that of a super-sub, with three ice-cool catches at long-on in the past two games, but there’s a strong case for his inclusion to offer an eighth bowling option in Adelaide, given that Malan – albeit for different reasons – had been carded to come in at No. 8 or below in each of England’s last two games, suggesting that an extra batter is arguably an even more under-utilised resource.Jordan lost his incremental England contract last month, which rather implies that this tournament could be his last hurrah. But his immense experience could still have a part to play, just as it seemed to have done in the World T20 final in 2016, when his final 12 deliveries went for a mere 15 runs. But for Carlos Brathwaite, that display could have been his defining moment.Related

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A finger injury has held Jordan back recently – he went for 13 an over in his comeback T20I against Australia last month – but last summer he showcased a willingness to adapt his repertoire to suit his surroundings, not least in the series against India, when he utilised a hit-the-pitch method to suit the wide acreage of the Ageas Bowl, before bringing his favoured yorker out of mothballs in the more cramped confines of Trent Bridge. That tactic had mixed success, particularly with Suryakumar Yadav in his sights, but with similarly short square boundaries at Adelaide, and on a used deck that may offer up reverse swing, having a man who still trusts that method may not be a bad option for England.Tymal Mills impressed in last year’s World Cup•Getty ImagesTymal Mills

Mills offers the opposite approach, in almost every sense. His left-arm line echoes that of the absent Reece Topley, whose ankle injury ruled him out before a ball of the tournament was bowled, while the yorker barely features in his repertoire – instead he prefers a diet of into-the-pitch offerings, mixing up the pace to confound his opponents’ ambitions, and always keeping the threat of a genuine 90mph/145kph bouncer up his sleeve.When it works, he is startlingly effective – Mills remains among the most economical death bowlers in T20 history – and last year, despite not having played a T20I since 2018, he was a shoo-in for Eoin Morgan’s T20 World Cup squad in the UAE, almost from the moment it was confirmed that the luckless Jofra Archer had sustained a stress fracture of the back. Seven wickets in his first three matches suggested Mills was on course to make up for lost time, but then his thigh popped after nine balls against Sri Lanka, and that was the end of his tournament.A lack of recent game-time might dissuade England from taking a gamble on a Mills recall: after struggling with a toe injury in the summer, he has played just two competitive matches since June, and none since the end of his Hundred campaign in August. But concerns over Mark Wood’s fitness – he has hardly bowled in training since England arrived in Adelaide – could see him come in as the quickest bowler in the attack.David Willey could match up well with India’s top order•Getty ImagesDavid Willey
Another man with unfinished business on the game’s biggest stages. Willey would have been a Player-of-the-Match contender had the 2016 final gone England’s way – in addition to his outstanding figures of 3 for 20, he also thumped two of his team’s five sixes to give a timely late flourish to an otherwise nervy innings. In fact, his ratio of one six from every 13 balls he’s faced in T20Is is higher than anyone in England’s ranks bar Moeen Ali, which makes him a handy option to have lurking for the death.But it’s his penetrative left-arm swing that would earn him his call-up, and maybe even complete his England rebirth after the cruel circumstances of the 2019 World Cup, when he was axed on the eve of the competition to accommodate Archer. No England bowler has claimed more wickets in the powerplay in T20Is – that period accounts for 31 of his 51 wickets, and at an economy-rate of 7.32 that stands up to scrutiny.And while that record might previously have hinted at a lack of versatility, England’s depth of bowling options means that his less formidable death-overs record (13 wickets at an economy of 10.09) need not be a reason to discount him. India’s top order have been vulnerable against left-arm seam early on, and the dimensions in Adelaide should allow him to pitch the ball up if selected.Liam Dawson would be a left-field replacement•ECB/Getty ImagesLiam Dawson

If England are intent on maxing out their bowling options, then how about heading into ultimate match-up territory? Liam Dawson’s international career has been one of the great modern curiosities. A World Cup winner in 2019, despite playing the last of his three ODIs in October 2018; an allrounder whose Test career spanned just three matches, but still outlasted the man who greeted him on debut with an unbeaten triple century. And now, a potential World Cup semi-finalist after a grand total of one international wicket in the past four years.Dawson is in Australia but is not in the squad, and England are very unlikely to call him up as a replacement unless Malan’s injury has worsened to the extent that he would be unavailable for a potential final on Sunday. But there would be some logic to bringing him in as an emergency option: if he is to get the call-up, it may simply be as a man-marker for the formidable Suryakumar – a batter whose 225 runs from 116 balls have featured some of the most startling shots ever witnessed at a World Cup, not least his tumbledown whip for six against Zimbabwe last week.He is a man seemingly without weakness, and yet, against left-arm spin in the past four years, his returns are merely good rather than world-beating – an average of 32 and a strike rate of 126, compared to 155+ against all other bowling types. Even if Dawson bowls just one over for eight while Suryakumar is swinging for the hills, that could prove crucial to England’s hopes.

Hosts make up for failings against Sri Lanka to give home support a night to remember

Firdose Moonda13-Feb-2023South Africa knew South Africans deserved better than the performance they put on in the World Cup opener at Newlands.They said so privately, at a team meeting they held immediately after their three-run loss when they discussed “everything and decided we’ll leave it there,” as Chloe Tryon revealed and they said it publicly, with an emotionally-charged tweet from Marizanne Kapp that read almost like an apology.”We spoke about it just after the game. We sat up in the changing-room and we spoke about everything and we said we’ll leave it here,” Tryon added. “We have a quick turnaround and we know we’ve got to go and make sure that we’re doing the right things. Everyone came with the mindset that today we’re just working really hard.”Everyone including the Paarl faithful. Even though they numbered little more than half the 8,000-plus that turned up in Cape Town for the first match, they made more of an impression with a passionate display of patriotism that started on the grass banks and ended in the president suite with a group of women singing a victory cry to the tune of Bonnie Tyler’s “It’s a heartache”. That may sound confusing, but you need to hear the lyrics. So hum the tune in your head and sing (with translation):They could belt that out at the end, but for large parts of the match, South Africans were fairly worried.Their top four continue to struggle, both with the fluency of their run-scoring and their ability to form partnerships. Captain Suné Luus is the only one to have passed 20 – and she’s done so in both matches – and they appear to be over-reliant on a middle-order that may still come to regret not having Dané van Niekerk or Mignon du Preez in it.

South Africa, you deserved better! #t20worldcup pic.twitter.com/FDgAePpE9E

— Marizanne Kapp (@kappie777) February 11, 2023

He will always be associated with this team, a team that has created its brand and its identity around him

Matt Roller27-Apr-2023Walking along Cubbon Road in Bengaluru at six o’clock on Wednesday evening, I had a stray thought. Is this what Naples was like in the time of Diego Maradona?Everyone in front of me has the same thing written on the back of their shirt: 18 VIRAT. Every ten metres I walk, someone else is trying to sell me a cheap replica of a Royal Challengers Bangalore jersey, each and every one emblazoned with the same print.If it was not already clear who the 40,000 fans at the Chinnaswamy Stadium had come to see, it was confirmed by his emergence for the warm-ups. As he walked on to the outfield, Virat Kohli’s face popped up on the big screen, and the crowd came to life.Related

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I had witnessed the same love for Kohli during the previous Sunday afternoon’s game, a hard-fought victory over Rajasthan Royals. After his dismissal, pinned lbw first ball by Trent Boult, the ground fell silent. The TV broadcast cut to an older woman in the stands, who put her hand on her head then turned to her neighbour in utter disbelief.But all was forgotten by the time he was patrolling the long-on boundary, temporarily back as RCB’s captain, with Faf du Plessis managing an injury. Kohli blew a kiss to the crowd, towards the executive box where his wife Anushka Sharma was sitting; the big-screen, slow-motion replay drew a louder cheer than the catch itself.Having witnessed Sunday’s game behind the insulated glass of the press box, I moved to the stands on Wednesday night to hear the crowd at full throttle. The Chinnaswamy is an old, enclosed, concrete stadium with remarkable acoustics; it seems to amplify the noise created by its crowd, which is invariably a sell-out for IPL games.As Wanindu Hasaranga bowled the fifth over of Kolkata Knight Riders’ innings, Kohli positioned himself at mid-off. After each delivery, as he walked back towards the edge of the ring, the lower tier of C Stand cheered as one, hoping beyond hope that he would acknowledge them. He only touched the ball once, but was still the centre of attention.’18 VIRAT’: Who wouldn’t want it?•Associated PressThe PA announcer knows who is in charge of this city, and plays up to it. In the previous over, he had declared to the fans that it was time for an apotheosis: “When I say ‘King’, you say ‘Kohli’!” he instructed, and so they did. It is a remarkable status for anyone to even begin to live up to.But Kohli is RCB, and RCB is Kohli. He is the only player to have featured for the same franchise in all 16 IPL seasons, playing in all but four of their 235 IPL matches. He was here as a 19-year-old boy on the competition’s opening night, playing for the same team against the same opposition, and he is still here now as a 34-year-old man. He will always be associated with this team, a team that has created its brand and its identity around him.When Kohli gave up the RCB captaincy 18 months ago, he appeared to unilaterally and indefinitely extend his contract with the franchise: “I will only play for RCB until my retirement,” he had said in a statement. Nobody batted an eyelid. As if they would ever dare to let him leave?He is front and centre of every sponsorship photoshoot, his face plastered on every billboard in the surrounding area. Kohli is not only a cricketer, but also a brand: you can buy suitcases, tyres, wellness supplements, orthodontic aligners and air-conditioning units which come with his seal of approval, and are reminded to do so every time you switch on your television.So when Kohli came out to bat alongside du Plessis, a 201-run target in their sights, there was a sense that this was why everyone was here. KKR’s innings had felt like a necessary inconvenience, a support act to warm the crowd up before the main event.As he has throughout this season, Kohli started positively. He slashed the first ball he faced to deep third for four, and after hitting Suyash Sharma for back-to-back fours at the start of the fifth over, he had raced to 30 off 15 balls with five boundaries, strutting around the crease with a characteristic swagger.Silence enveloped the ground after Virat Kohli was given out against KKR•Associated PressIn doing so, Kohli set a new record for the most runs by a T20 batter at a single venue. The landmark went largely unnoticed, but was fitting: along with MS Dhoni playing for Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk, and Rohit Sharma representing Mumbai Indians at Wankhede, Kohli playing for RCB at Chinnaswamy is one of this league’s iconic combinations.But after the soft dismissals of du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell, the two other superstars in this RCB batting line-up, Kohli was almost on his own. There were few qualms about his now-characteristic slowdown against spin; given the circumstances, it seemed their only chance of hauling down this target was for Kohli to bat deep into the innings.When Shahbaz Ahmed, Mahipal Lomror and Suyash Prabhudessai’s names were read out, they hardly drew a response. The contrast in reception for RCB’s big three and the rest of their middle order emphasised the over reliance on a select few that this franchise has always faced, one reflected in their supporters’ adoration of their established stars but apparent ambivalence towards their young players.Lomror provided an effective foil. He dominated a 55-run stand with Kohli for the fourth wicket, hitting 34 off 18 balls before he was caught on the rope, falling just short in an attempt to strike back-to-back sixes off Varun Chakravarthy.Kohli’s method – trying to build a partnership to attack at the death after losing three early wickets – left the game in his hands. And when, on 54, he swung Andre Russell out towards midwicket after a lull, there was a brief moment when he seemed to have got enough power into his pull shot to clear the ropes.He hadn’t. Venkatesh Iyer dived forward and clung on to a difficult catch, and the game was as good as done. Silence enveloped the ground as the TV umpire confirmed that Iyer’s catch was clean. Kohli trudged off, taking a realistic chance of a third consecutive victory with him.Forty-five minutes later, Kohli was in front of the cameras again, sending his team a rocket after a sloppy performance in the field. As he spoke, Cubbon Road was full of people again. They traipsed towards the metro station or hailed auto rickshaws, having witnessed a defeat that must have been all too familiar for supporters of a franchise who have always fallen just short.But those same supporters had witnessed a hero in the flesh, cutting and pulling, living and breathing. And in three weeks’ time, when RCB return home after five consecutive away games, there is no doubt that the road will be filled with shirts emblazoned with ’18 VIRAT’ on their backs once more.

And also, numbers from a day to forget for Adam Zampa

Sampath Bandarupalli15-Sep-2023174 – Heinrich Klaasen’s score against Australia in Centurion, which is now the second-highest individual score by a batter playing at No. 5 or lower in ODIs, behind only Kapil Dev’s unbeaten 175 against Zimbabwe during the 1983 World Cup.0 – Individual ODI scores higher than Klaasen’s 174 after coming to bat in the 25th over or later (where fall-of-wickets data is available). The previous highest was 162 not out by AB de Villiers against West Indies in 2015 and Jos Buttler against Netherlands last year.14.47 – Run rate of the partnership between Klaasen and David Miller, by far the highest for a stand of 200-plus in ODI cricket (where fall-of-wickets data is available). The previous fastest was between Eoin Morgan and Jos Buttler, who added 204 runs at 10.03 runs an over against West Indies in 2019.113 – Runs conceded by Adam Zampa in his ten overs – the most by any bowler in an innings in men’s ODIs. Zampa equalled the record of Mick Lewis, who had done the same against South Africa in the famous 438 vs 434 Johannesburg ODI of 2006.173 – Runs scored by South Africa in the last ten overs of their innings. This is the highest by any team between the 41st and 50th overs of a men’s ODI innings (where ball-by-ball data is available). England’s 164 was the previous highest, scored during last year’s Amstelveen ODI against Netherlands.77 – Balls Klaasen needed to complete his 150, the fourth-fastest for any batter in men’s ODIs. It is also the second-fastest for South Africa, behind AB de Villiers who needed 64 balls for his 150 against West Indies in the 2015 World Cup.7 – The partnership of 222 between Klaasen and Miller is the first double-century stand in ODIs against Australia for the fifth wicket or lower. It is also the fifth-highest partnership for the fifth wicket in ODIs overall, and the second-highest for South Africa, behind 256* by JP Duminy and Miller against Zimbabwe in 2015.20 – Sixes hit by South Africa during their innings. These are the highest number of sixes hit by South Africa in an ODI, equalling the 20 against India in the 2015 Mumbai ODI. These are also the second-most sixes conceded by Australia in an ODI, behind the 21 against England in 2018 Nottingham ODI.7 – Number of 400-plus totals for South Africa in ODI cricket, the most for any team, going one ahead of India’s six.

Right up until the moment they haven’t – the story of how Afghanistan never got the memo

Osman Samiuddin23-Oct-20232:38

Mumtaz: Panic should have set in for Pakistan during the Asia Cup

Right. Two hundred and eighty-two on the board. A bit ropey there at one stage but solid recovery. Ninety-one runs in the last 10, looking forward to the Iftikhar memes and the ‘Shadab Khan is a batter’ think pieces.Pakistan have got this.It’s Afghanistan: 7-0. Seven losses but 70 different ways of snatching defeat from the mouth of victory. Sure, they beat England but every World Cup has an upset or two. Not three. It brings some colour, a bit of hope.Anyway, here comes Shaheen Afridi and he more than anyone has got this. Back in form, back in the wickets, Mr Mojo risin’. Pace is up from the last few games too. He’s going to pick up a couple of early wickets finally and Afghanistan’s batting is all about those early wickets. Break through them and game is done.Related

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• Afghanistan end the Pakistan hoodoo

• 'This win tastes nice' – Afghanistan jubilant after historic win against Pakistan

Bowls that first over. Looking for That First Over again. Starts, as he’s been doing for a while, too straight. Four down fine leg. Temporarily corrects lengths. But goes full again, this time outside off. Four more. Loosener. All good.Hello Hasan Ali. Been a bit floaty through this entire tournament. Only here because Naseem Shah isn’t. But he’ll be fine. He’s smart. Old hand. Been around. Enough tricks in the bag to see this through.Three tight balls. Good disciplines. Too much width next two balls, two fours. Not so good disciplines. All good though. Early days.Seven overs gone now, Shaheen and Hasan not breathing fire truth be told. Barely a chance, barely a sniff, just one overturned decision. No worries though, Haris Rauf’s been brought on. Pace will do for them. Express. He’s gone for plenty this World Cup but remember how he ripped through Afghanistan two months ago in Hambantota? Fifty-nine all out chasing 202. Good days those.Oh dear.The good news is that this first over isn’t as expensive as his first over against Australia. The bad news is I’m lying and there is no good news as it’s gone for 17 unless, I guess, that’s progress from conceding 24? Afghanistan racing here. It’s fine, it’s Afghanistan. The same openers raced to 227 in less than 40 overs against Pakistan also in Hambantota two months ago. Somehow, they only managed 300. Somehow Pakistan chased it down. With one ball to spare. One wicket to spare. Naseem Shah. Good days those.It’s the 11th over now. No wickets but it’s Chennai. Spin it to win it. It was spinning when Afghanistan were deploying their quartet of spinners earlier (RIP, incidentally, Bishan Singh Bedi, Afghanistan are doing your art proud). Usama Mir’s coming on. Impossible I know, like forgetting your name, but forget that drop in Bangalore. He bowled well in parts against Australia. Spun the ball, sometimes more in one ball than the accumulated degrees of turn generated by both Shadab and Mohammad Nawaz combined in the month before. This pitch is perfect for him.

Afghanistan 130 for 0. All bowlers used. Slightly alarming but like your five-year-old repeating a swear word they heard you use, not an irretrievable situation in life. I said ‘shucks’ darling

Though, hmmm. Seven off the over and Afghanistan have barely broken sweat and not breaking sweat in Chennai is some hitherto undiscovered massive hack in the physiology of human reactions to Chennai humidity. Usama’s lengths are a little all over the place. Not much turn either. Dew? The lights? Different pitch?Just throwing this out there, but the fielding’s been a little off. Overthrows. Diving over balls. Not backing up. Looking a bit spent, all of them. So, what you’re saying is that it’s going to be on the bowlers then because, lol, when is it not?Pakistan’s bowling has been the problem so far but this is Afghanistan, they’ll find a way to make them look good. Pakistan have got this.Shadab this. Here’s the story. Shadab returns, first fires with the bat, puts in a proper spell of legspin, a couple of wickets because it’s Chennai, and be all supercool in the field. The only problem will be not getting too giddy because it’s Afghanistan.Getting some nice dip immediately, a little full but this is promising. At least there’s been no…. oh wait, there it is. Filthy long hop. Third ball. Only thing filthier is the Shaheen effort at long-on. Four. Upside: at least was beaten by the spin.Drinks now. Afghanistan 105 for no loss. Pakistan have used five bowlers. You know what that means though right? Ifti is in the house, boys and girls. This is his day. He’s been bowling little spells here and there and not been a disaster. Against Australia he was 8-0-37-0 in a total of 367. It’s up there with not sweating in Chennai.He’s going to do this. It’s written. Good over to start too, only the second in the last eight to not concede a boundary. The strangle is on. Until second ball of his second over, it’s not. High and handsome over his head for six, as easy as taking a single.Afghanistan 130 for 0. All bowlers used. Slightly alarming but like your five-year-old repeating a swear word they heard you use, not an irretrievable situation in life. I said “shucks” darling. Anyway, Pakistan are much better with the ball after half an innings. Pulled it back against Sri Lanka. Pulled it back even harder against Australia. This is where it begins.A dejected Babar Azam walks back after Pakistan conceded their first ODI loss against Afghanistan•ICC/Getty ImagesShaheen’s back and here we go. Wicket first ball. Even better sign: Usama’s held a steepler at third man. is where it turns. Scrappy, unconvincing win incoming, Pakistan caravan rolls on. Well played Afghanistan.Shadab’s also on. Fast bowler and leggie, leggie and fast bowler, the Real Pakistan Way. Then Haris is back and Usama’s on. Fast bowler and leggie, leggie and fast bowler, also the Real Pakistan Way.Except, did anyone send that manifesto to Afghanistan, because there’ll be trouble if they didn’t? Did they hit ‘Send’ because it really feels like they didn’t. It’s been nine overs since the wicket. They’ve put on 41. They’ve just hit Usama for back-to-back boundaries. Cut, then pulled, you say (. Two overs, only four runs, one maiden. Even Athers is talking about it on air, willing it into reality. Pakistan are going to pull a rabbit out and you better get your ’92 on.And here’s Hasan, bemused like all of us, watching this one sail back high over his head. Lucky not to sprain his neck. Six. Afghanistan need a run a ball with eight in hand. Panic? Nah. This is just the most elaborate set-up to the punchline of how Afghanistan lose this one, perhaps the best one yet.You watch. Babar’s got this under control. Pace, spin, spin, pace, he’s making changes like a Grandmaster whirling pieces around the board in a game of speed chess. Eight lightning-fast changes of bowling in 10 overs since that six and now Afghanistan have taken 19 off two overs with just one boundary and it’s gone from 54 off 48 to 35 off 36 and now 19 off 24 and wait, who’s got this under control?There’s an edge for four and Hasan’s whiplashing his neck again watching another fly off over him and remember your five-year-old? She’s now teaching you swear words.Afghanistan have got this. They’ve had this from ball one.

Players and support staff members weigh in on the possible solutions to not lose out days of Ranji Trophy games every season

Daya Sagar and Nikhil Sharma20-Jan-2024The winter fog in northern India has once again disrupted the Ranji Trophy, forcing coaches and players to question why the matches are being played in conditions where visibility is low and the outfield often wet.Matches across the first few rounds of the Ranji season, including the ongoing third round – in Delhi, Meerut, Chandigarh, Jammu, Lahli, Kanpur and Mullanpur – were all affected to varying degrees, with overs and even days lost without a ball being bowled. The problem is not new and has persisted over the years with the BCCI unable to figure a viable solution.With vital points being lost, teams have once again listed some possible solutions the Indian board could look at before it makes the schedule next season. Former India spinner Sunil Joshi, who is the Uttar Pradesh head coach, wants north India to be ignored from the fixtures’ list during the peak of winter, and wants the respective teams’ home games to be played in the later stages of the tournament.”Look, in big tournaments like the Ranji Trophy, teams suffer losses if the matches are not completed,” Joshi told ESPNcricinfo. “My advice is that where there is so much fog [smog, in some cases], instead of playing home matches first, north Indian teams should be given home matches in February, by which time the fog reduces. You will see how many matches in the last two rounds have been affected by fog or bad light.”In the latest round, not a single ball could be bowled on the first day in three matches – Uttar Pradesh vs Bihar in Meerut, Punjab vs Tripura in Mohali, and Chandigarh vs Gujarat in Chandigarh – while Services vs Jharkhand in Delhi, at the Palam ground near the airport, started over an hour late.Similarly, in the first two rounds, time was lost during Haryana vs Rajasthan in Lahli, Chandigarh vs Railways in Chandigarh, Jammu & Kashmir vs Himachal Pradesh in Jammu, Delhi vs Puducherry in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh vs Bengal in Kanpur, Railways vs Punjab in Mullanpur, Jammu & Kashmir vs Delhi in Jammu, and Services vs Rajasthan in Delhi. Matches in Patna and other cities in the eastern part of India were also affected by late starts and early finishes.In two of these matches, Haryana vs Rajasthan and J&K vs Delhi, not a single innings could be completed. Obviously, points were lost, or not won, which will impact the progress of the teams to the next round.Fog has interrupted a number of Ranji Trophy games this season too•NurPhoto via Getty Images”It would have been better if our matches in north India were held after January,” Anshu Jain, coach of Rajasthan, said. Their first game, in Rohtak in Haryana, saw only 42 overs of action. Their second, against Services in Delhi, had 277.1 overs played.”Two of our matches have already been affected by this. Everyone knows that at there is fog in north India this time of the year. If we were playing in our home ground in Jaipur, this would not have been a problem and the players would have got more opportunity to spend time on the field instead of in the pavilion.”I am not saying that Ranji Trophy should start in October. It is very hot then and this will make it difficult for fast bowlers to bowl long spells. January is the right time, but then holding matches in north India in January should be avoided. If north India matches are held after January 25, that would be the best time.”Though weather patterns are continuously changing, it’s generally understood that it starts to clear towards the end of January, making it easier to complete 90 overs each day in north India.”The Ranji Trophy cannot be held earlier as the [T20] Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and [one-day] Vijay Hazare Trophy are now held earlier due to the IPL auctions,” Services captain Rajat Paliwal said. “Yes, if the first three rounds of matches are in south or west India, then it is better. In our last match, we lost 15 to 20 overs every day. Very few overs were played in Jammu and the match in Delhi (Arun Jaitley Stadium)] was also affected.”Could a tweak in the scheduling of tournaments – moving things around – help?”It is also possible to start the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in October and the Ranji Trophy in November, and end the season with the Vijay Hazare Trophy,” Paliwal said. “I hope this will be considered by those in charge for the next season. If there is a reduction in overs in any match, it affects the result of the game and the points. There is a high possibility that the match will have no result.”Not everyone is in agreement, though. Not to forget, crop burning and the overall levels of pollution make playing cricket close to impossible in parts of north India in the time of the year Paliwal talks about.”The schedule we have is fine,” Jharkhand batting coach Satish Singh said. “This is the best time and season to play first-class cricket in India. Looking at the weather, Ranji Trophy can’t be held too much earlier or much later. You cannot fight with nature. Wherever you play, the weather will affect one or two matches, teams will lose points for no fault of theirs in one or two matches. We have no problem with this schedule as a team.”The concerns of the other teams still remain valid because it is the premier first-class tournament in India, and glory at the Ranji Trophy remains cherished, despite the IPL and everything else. Whether there is a solution or not, no-one likes to lose points without scrapping legitimately for them.

Lack of preparation and individual errors leave West Indies facing seven-session defeat

Nagraj Gollapudi11-Jul-20240:59

Seales: West Indies lacking consistency in first Test

Inevitable. Even West Indies wouldn’t mind if that’s the general conclusion drawn from the manner in which they have all but surrendered the first Test to England. They are lucky that the denouement is deferred to the third morning.You don’t need to be in West Indies’ dressing room now to know how they must feel: dejected and defeated. Barely half an hour after the close of play, Jayden Seales, who took four first-innings wickets, sat with his head bowed before the media briefing started.His first answer summed up the sombre mood in the visiting camp: Seales said it was “frustrating looking up at the scoreboard” on Friday evening with England four wickets away from an innings victory. Seales blamed West Indies’ batters for failing on Thursday.Unfortunately, those batters failed on all fronts for second successive day. Once again, wickets fell in quick succession without any meaningful partnerships. In fact, the highest stand for the visitors in the match was the 44-run stand on Thursday between Mikyle Louis and Alick Athanaze. In contrast, England had three 50-plus stands that frustrated West Indies bowlers.Unlike the overcast first day, Friday was wonderfully sunny with Lord’s festively dressed in red to mark ‘Red for Ruth Day’. Harry Brook and Joe Root looked set for a big score each, but each was defeated by the mastery of the bowler. Brook went for a premeditated pull, but Alzarri Joseph had banged in a short-of-a-length delivery on the fifth-stump line that climbed fast to gain a top edge while Gudakesh Motie, coming from around the wicket, bowled an arm ball disguised as inswinger which landed on the side of the seam to deviate naturally by that little bit, enough to push back Root’s off stump.Motie has already bowled another wondrous delivery (this time from over the wicket), which pitched in the rough outside Ben Stokes’ off stump, coughed up dust, turned big, and rushed past the inside edge to uproot the middle stump, leaving the England captain wide-eyed and gaping with astonishment.Ben Stokes was bowled by a beauty from Gudakesh Motie•Gareth Copley/Getty ImagesThen there was the amazing runout by Louis who charged in from deep point to pick up a miscue from Jamie Smith which landed in no-man’s-land before darting at bullseye and uprooting the stump to run out a hapless Shoaib Bashir.Yet, those positives could not offset the mistakes of the batters. Virtually every visiting batter would look back at his dismissal today and acknowledge that he could have avoided that one action that proved fatal.One learning for West Indies’ batters will be not getting stuck without scoring for long pockets of time, something that forced them to commit an error. Of course, the pressure created by a disciplined England bowling attack, which improved their lines quickly from the first innings, and focussed on sticking to good length and short-of-length was immense.But as Holder briefly showed, you can pick the odd bad ball and cover up as long as you are not forcing the issue. Unfortunately, he failed to successfully duck a short delivery from Atkinson which came nearly a minute before the scheduled close.Related

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England’s batters never found themselves under such an incessant scrutiny. When they look at the numbers, West Indies bowlers will notice there were 111 full-pitched deliveries (as recorded by ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data) off which England looted 131 runs while losing just one wicket.While West Indies attempted to fire in the short ball to, as Seales said, force an error, the majority of those deliveries lacked the bluntness barring the one that got Brook. Instead, off 24 short deliveries, England picked 30 runs.There are some individual learnings, too. One young man England fans were keen to watch was Shamar Joseph, the 24-year-old speed demon from the remote Guyanese village of Baracara. His heroics at the Gabba this January to stun Australia on an injured foot made him a compelling story.On his first day at Lord’s, three days before the Test, Joseph said he and his team would look to “ruin” Anderson’s farewell. Not just that, he was confident about putting his name on the Honours Board, which eluded even Brian Lara. Joseph was not being cocky, having delivered on similar desire in the only two Tests he played – in Adelaide where he bagged a wicket on his first ball on debut and a five-for and then a seven-wicket haul in Brisbane.James Anderson got Kraigg Brathwaite for the eighth time in Tests•Getty ImagesAt Lord’s, though, we will remember Joseph mainly for lying flat twice on his back, suffering cramps and stiffness in his leg and eventually walking off. Joseph had missed the warm-up match in Beckenham last week due to Hurricane Beryl disrupting flights from the Caribbean. He had not played any red-ball cricket since January 29, when the Gabba Test finished and since then was just playing or training in a T20 environment – in IPL and then in the World Cup.Test cricket, Joseph will know now, is ruthless. You can’t just turn up and hit the straps. The hard yards are necessary: he can look at Atkinson, who opted out of the playing at Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL to focus on playing first-class cricket because the ECB had set England-after-Anderson in motion. The best example is Anderson himself – 40,000-plus deliveries in Test cricket, but never did he forget to be ready.Fitness, temperament, patience, consistency and relentless discipline: these are the factors that underpin Anderson’s longevity and unparalleled success. The same applies to Stokes.A Test defeat in just over two days is embarrassing, no doubt. Unfortunately for West Indies, this is the second time this year they find themselves in that position. This January, they lost the first Test of the Australia series in Adelaide inside three days. A week later, they turned up for the pink-ball Test in Brisbane and created history by winning a Test match in Australia for the first time since 1997.But expecting a miracle like the one Joseph performed is wishful. The turnaround in this three-match Test series is fast so West Indies have the disadvantage of not having any time to switch off. Nor do they have the luxury of another warm-up: they have to do things on the run.